ABOUT A LETTER.

Press, Volume LXIV, Issue 19376, 31 July 1928, Page 4

ABOUT A LETTER.

AN ALLEGATION—AND AN

EXPLANATION.

WHEN CR. LEAVER WAS DISQUALIFIED.

When the subject of Cr. E. A. M. Leaver's disqualification, because of a breach of the Municipal Corporations Act, was being discussed at the last meeting of the New Brighton Borougli Council, the Mayor (Mr A. W. Owles) denied an allegation that he had received a copy of the letter sent to Cr. Leaver by the Controller and Auditor- | General. At last night's meeting ot the Co'.incil Mr Owles again refuted this statement, and in support of his denial he produced a copy of the letter sent b> the Audit Department to Cr. l.eavcr. in which no mention was made of a copy having been forwarded to Mr Owles. When this was produced Cr. Leaver explained that he had shown a letter received ly him from Mr D." 0. Sullivan to C'r, A. E. Lawry. '1 will not sit here and allow a reflection to be east upon a le'.low Councillor," said Cr. Leaver in a subsequent statement. At the request of the Mayor, the Clerk (Mr C. T. Middletcn) read a copy of the letter sent by Mr Owles to the Audit Department, Wellington, as follows : lii reference to the disqualification of Cr. E. A. M. Leaver under Section 40 of the Municipal Corporations Act, .1920, a statement was made by a Councillor at a meeting of my Council last evening that he had seon your communication to Cr. Leaver apprising that gentleman of his disqualification, and that you had informed Cr. lye aver that you were forwarding a copy of such letter to me. As no letter has been received by me. I would esteem it a favour if you would kindly advise me whether such communication was forwarded, and, if so, for what date? In reply to the Mayor, the Controller and Auditor-General (Mr. G. F. C. Campbell) wrote stating that Cr. Leaver had not been advised that a copy of the Audit Office letter was being forwarded to the Mayor. A copy of the. letter sent- to Cr. Leaver was enclosed. It read as follows:

The Audit Inspector has reported that during his recent audit of the New Brighton Borough accounts the following payments by the New Brighton Borough Council came under his notice: Band uniforms, £BO, W. Pugli, paid March, 1927. Band uniforms, £39 17s 6d, W. Pugh, paid May, 1928. Mr Pugh is stated by you to be foreman of your tailoring business, and the uniforms were manufactured in your workroom. The Audit Inspector, when forwarding your explanation of the circumstances under which the uniforms were manufactured by you for the Band and the payments made therefor by the Borough Council, reports that the Council was the contracting authority for the Band, the instruments wer§ the property of the borough, and the Council had made grants for the purchase of uniforms. It is also stated that payment of the insurance premiums was made partly in cover of the uniforms supplied out of the Council funds, and the insurance moneys when received were paid into the District Fund Account, not into the insurance account, *as stated by you. In view of these facts I regret that I am unable to arrive at any other. conclusion than that by the transaction in question you are disqualified from acting as a Councillor, and any act performed by you as a Councillor renders you liable to the penalties imposed by Section 41 (2) of the Act. .'"At. last' meeting l of. the Council," said the Mayor, "a councillor insinuated that I had seen the letter sent by ' the Audit Office to Councillor Leaver, in which it was stated that a copy was being forwarded to me. I gsve that au emphatic denial and I do so again to-night. I will now ask the Clerk to read my letter to the Audit Office and the correspondence received from that Department." The above letters were read by the Clerk, The, Mayor: I now leave the matter in Councillor Lawry's hands. Cr. Lawry: I'm pleased to see that the matter has been cleared up, and all I can say is that I saw the statement to which, reference is made in a letter which was shown to me privately. The Mayor : Was it from the AuditorGeneral ? .

Cr. Lawrv: I won't' say that. Cr. Leaver said that perhaps He wotild be able to clear matters up. "Within half an hour, Mr Mayor, I will produce a letter in which the Auditor-General states that he has informed the Mayor of New Brighton of my disqualification. I'll produce that letter any time you think fit. I may say here that the letter was one received by Mr D G. Sullivan, M.P., from the Auditor-General. I will not sit here and see a reflection cast upon a fellow Councillor."

The Mayor: What have you to say, Cr. Lawry? Cr. Lawry: The letter was addressed to Mr Sullivan. Cr. ft. Stokes moved that the matter stand over.

Or. Leaver: I'll bring the letter to the Council..

There.was no further discussion, and the matter was allowed to stand o%*er.